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Quarterbacks
Tier One
1. Aaron Rodgers, Packers | Age: 26.9 – Five years younger than Brees, eight years younger than Manning, and already outproducing both with just as many weapons. The best playmaking QB in the league.
2. Drew Brees, Saints | Age: 31.8 – The most accurate QB in the game, Brees enjoys a domefield advantage and has plenty of weapons plus a creative playcaller.
3. Peyton Manning, Colts | Age: 34.6 – You can set your watch by Manning finishing in the Top-5. The emergence of Garcon and Collie to go with Wayne, Clark and wildcard Gonzalez maintains stability for future years.
4. Philip Rivers, Chargers | Age: 28.9 – The Chargers have morphed into a pass-first offense behind the All-Pro caliber play of Rivers, V-Jax, and Gates. Rivers is the best in the league at throwing past the sticks on third down, rarely settling for a dumpoff.
Tier Two
5. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers | Age: 28.6 – If not for the concussion history and the uncertain future of coordinator Bruce Arians, Big Ben would be in the big tent with the fantasy masters. He's certainly in the conversation for best NFL QB.
6. Tony Romo, Cowboys | Age: 30.5 – Miles Austin's emergence as a true playmaking No. 1 has Romo on the rise again. Perhaps his strong finish will finally earn him a scrutiny-free vacation in 2010.
7. Tom Brady, Patriots | Age: 33.1 - Will be another year removed from knee surgery next year, but he's suddenly in dire need of an influx of offensive weapons at age 33.
8. Matt Schaub, Texans | Age: 29.3 – The next Marc Bulger? May be missing the "it" factor, but he can put up elite numbers in a four-year window.
9. Matt Ryan, Falcons | Age: 25.4 – The No. 1 quarterback buy of the upcoming offseason, Ryan's 2009 metrics in a "disappointing" season suggest he remains a rising star.
10. Joe Flacco, Ravens | Age: 25.8 – The fantasy success hasn't arrived yet, but it's on the way. Flacco's 6,584 passing yards through two seasons are the fifth-most in NFL history behind only Peyton Manning, Dan Marino, Drew Bledsoe, and Jeff Garcia.
Tier Three
11. Jay Cutler, Bears | Age: 27.5 – Prototypical million-dollar arm, five-cent head, but the Bears offense has nowhere to go but up in 2010. Cutler doesn't offer much long-term stability on the Jeff George career path, but he should be a fine buy-low for the 2010 season.
12. Eli Manning, Giants | Age: 29.8 – Career year in 2009 with the influx of young receiving talent. Can he stay above 60 percent on completions and avoid the late-season doldrums?
13. Donovan McNabb, Eagles | Age: 33.10 – Aging, streaky QB with explosive young weapons in the passing game and an annoying habit of losing accuracy for stretches. Another extension in Philly would be nice.
14. Vince Young, Titans | Age: 27.4 – The comeback from the brink of a wasted career was surprising enough, but an even more shocking development occurred when Young brought the deep ball back in Tennessee. While he still needs work on his mechanics and accuracy, VY's second term begins with more explosive offensive talent than the Titans have had in the past decade.
Tier Four
15. Matthew Stafford, Lions | Age: 22.7 – Stafford took a beating in his rookie season, but he also earned the respect of his coaches and teammates as a team leader with a cannon arm, toughness, and poise. An upgraded offensive line and legit No. 2 receiver would do wonders for his production.
16. Chad Henne, Dolphins | Age: 25.2 – Henne struggled with ill-timed interceptions, a below average feel for the pass rush, and a waxing-and-waning accuracy in his 13 starts. On the flip side, he absolutely has the arm, the intangibles, and the penchant for rising to the occasion.
17. Mark Sanchez, Jets | Age: 23.10 - Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer is talking up a recent "transformation" in his rookie QB, and Sanchez gets credit for his best performance in the biggest game of the year. He has the confidence, toughness, and intelligence to be a true building block, but can he stay healthy?
18. Brett Favre, Vikings | Age: 40.11 – Why retire now? Coming off arguably the most impressive regular season of his career, Favre is enjoying more playmaking offensive weapons than he's ever had at his disposal.
19. Kurt Warner, Cardinals | Age: 39.3 – I'm not buying the retirement talk just yet. Warner is healthy, can obviously still play and is signed through another year where the Cardinals will be considered the favorites in the NFC West.
20. Josh Freeman, Buccaneers | Age: 22.8 – The athleticism and arm strength were expected, but Freeman also showed surprising accuracy. If he can learn to hold onto the ball, he may survive the lack of surrounding talent.
Tier Five
21. Carson Palmer, Bengals | Age: 30.8 – Bypassed Eli Manning as the most over-rated player in the league in 2009. Whether it's an arm injury or simply a mechanical issue, he's morphed into a less accurate Chad Pennington.
22. David Garrard, Jaguars | Age: 32.7 – Check out his home/road splits from 2009. There wasn't a more a Jekyll-and-Hyde QB in the league last year. While it's true that he got little help from his offensive line, Garrard has reached the point where his franchise has checked out of the relationship emotionally. The grass is greener on Tebow's side.
23. Jason Campbell. Redskins | Age: 28.9 – Would like to see what he could do with a fresh start behind a solid offensive line and 2-3 years in the same offensive system. Statistically, he's coming off the best season of his career when everything crumpled around him.
24. Michael Vick, Eagles | Age: 30.3 – Good chance he has his own starting job in 2010. How much is left of the pre-prison magic?
25. Matt Cassel, Chiefs | Age: 28.4 – A bust in his first season as the Chiefs' franchise quarterback, Cassel has reason for hope with offensive cornerstones Jamaal Charles and Dwayne Bowe. Improvement up front is a must.
26. Kyle Orton, Broncos | Age: 27.10 – Having Orton as your starting quarterback is the NFL equivalent of purgatory. The Broncos are biding their time until something better comes along.
27. Kevin Kolb, Eagles | Age: 26.1 – How long until he gets his shot? Kolb was better than expected in two early-season starts, but it's worth pointing out that his numbers were padded in garbage time against the Saints while DeSean Jackson did the heavy lifting against a decrepit Chiefs defense. Kolb's value as a potential starter remains mostly guesswork.
28. Matt Moore, Panthers | Age: 26.1 – If only he had a started for the Panthers all year. The coaching staff finally began trusting Moore down the stretch, and he rewarded them with an impressive 4-1 finish. Now 7-3 as a starter, Moore is the favorite to enter 2010 as Carolina's quarterback.
Tier Six
29. Alex Smith, 49ers | Age: 26.4 – Despite intermittent progress in the second half, the 49ers are kidding themselves if they believe they can seriously contend with Smith at QB in 2010.
30. Matt Hasselbeck, Seahawks | Age: 35.0 – It's hard to separate Hasselbeck from the poor play of his offensive line and wide receivers, but it's obvious that he's on a steep decline.
31. Matt Leinart, Cardinals | Age: 27.4 – His work in relief of Warner the past few seasons hasn't exactly inspired confidence. The Cardinals may seek competition for Leinart if Warner retires.
32. Brady Quinn, Browns | Age: 25.11 – Accuracy implies consistency, which is severely missing in Quinn's game. Even with the career game against the Lions, Quinn still managed just a 53.1 completion rate and 5.23 yards per attempt. Holmgren can't head into 2010 with Quinn as his only viable option at quarterback.
Tier Seven
33. Nate Davis, 49ers | Age: 23.4 – Outplayed Alex Smith and Shaun Hill in preseason action last summer. Unless the Niners draft a QB this April, there's more chafe than wheat in front of him in San Francisco.
34. Dennis Dixon, Steelers | Age: 25.8 – Showed enough promise in his one start to believe he could end up starting elsewhere down the road.
35. Tarvaris Jackson, Vikings | Age: 27.5 – Likely a restricted free agent for the Vikings. Will Favre be back?
36. Sage Rosenfels, Vikings | Age: 32.6 – Unlike Jackson, he's signed through 2011 and could be a starter by default if Favre retires.
37. Chad Pennington, Free Agent | Age: 34.3 – Leaning toward playing again in 2010, but not a great bet for fantasy value even if he does win a starting job in his new home.
38. Marc Bulger, Rams | Age: 33.5 – Wants to stay in St. Louis, but the Rams are ready to turn the page. Defensive coordinators know he can no longer avoid the blitz.
39. Trent Edwards, Bills | Age: 26.11 – Injury-prone checkdown master lacking in confidence. His starting days are over.
40. Josh Johnson, Buccaneers | Age: 24.4 – Still raw but has the requisite talent and skills to resurface down the line.
41. Troy Smith, Ravens | Age: 26.2 – Pushing for a trade out of Baltimore, but what do the Ravens have to gain by giving up their Flacco insurance?
42. Bruce Gradkowski, Raiders | Age: 27.8 – A third-stringer who looks good only in comparison to JaMarcus Russell. Completed just 54.7 of his passes in 2009, which qualified him for offensive savior for a month.
43. Seneca Wallace, Seahawks | Age: 30.1 – Could he hold down the fort for the QB of the future if Hasselbeck is traded?
44. Jake Delhomme, Panthers | Age: 35.8 – Had a hard time throwing with a fork sticking out of his back at age 34. Delhomme can't beat out Matt Moore in a fair competition.
45. Pat White, Dolphins | Age: 24.7 – Showed nothing as a rookie that would lead one to believe he has a future as an NFL starting QB.
46. Derek Anderson, Browns | Age: 27.3 – With a career 52.9 completion rate, Anderson isn't the answer in Cleveland or anywhere else.
47. Brian Brohm, Bills | Age: 25.0 – An unmitigated disaster in Green Bay, but surprisingly wasn't a flat-out overwhelmed basket case in his late-season start with the Bills. He's obviously set the standards incredibly low.
48. Ryan Fitzpatrick, Bills | Age: 27.10 – He somehow manages to stumble into significant playing time, where he stands constantly on the verge of getting pulled for the guy just signed off the street.
49. Kerry Collins, Titans | Age: 37.9 – Given too long of a rope with the Titans in 2009. It won't happen again even if he leaves Tennessee.
50. JaMarcus Russell, Raiders | Age: 25.1 – What a pathetic excuse for an NFL player. With a lack of commitment, work ethic, maturity, and perspective, he's going the way of Ryan Leaf and Akili Smith.
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